Knitting machine



April 28, 1936. H. s. REGAR KNITTING MACHINE- Filyed Jan. 14, 1955 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Snventor HQL/ARD Jbl/:Aw RfqAR Ill April 2s, 1936. H. s. REGAR 2,039,237

KNITTINGV MACHINE Filed Jan. 14, 1935 3 sheets-sheet 2 v Snuentor Hou/ARD Jn/RN RfqAn En A fu TM I Gttorneg Apri] 28, 1.93.6. 1 H REGAR 2,039,237

'KNITTING MACHINE -k Filed Jan. 14, 1935 3 She'etS-Sheet -3 mventor (Ittorneg Patented Apr. 28, 1936 PATENT4 OFFICE KNITTING MACHINE Howard Severn Regar, Cleveland Heights, Ohio, assigner to The Wovenright Knitting Co., Cleveland, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application January 14, 1935, Serial No. 1,649

7 Claims.

This invention relates broadly to knitting machines and more specifically to an' improved thread carrier for guiding a reinforcing thread into the knitting needles within a localized area of the fabric. The invention further pertains to the arrangement of the fibers in the knitted fabric and contemplates the resultant advantages cf such structure in the fabric. i

The improved thread guide and thread carrier embodying the present inventionis adapted for use in conjunction with a knitting machine of the circulan' reciprocating type such as the machine disclosed in the United States patent to Lawson, No. 1,458,833, dated June 12, 1933, the actuating mechanism therefor being constructed for use with the control members of such ma.- chine.

One ofthe objects of the present invention is to construct a thread carrier which is so fulcrumed within the machine as to eiect its retraction from the knitting needles during the oscillatory movement thereof.

Another object of the invention is to provide a thread carrier which will position the thread for entry Within the knitting needles during one stage of the reciprocative movement of the needle cylinder in the knitting cycle of the machine, position the thread above the path of the needle during the reverse movement of the needle cylinder and maintains the thread from engagement Within the knitting needles during subsequent knitting operations of the machine.

Another object of the invention is to construct a thread carrier having a throat or guiding face thereon which will automatically feed the knitting needles during a portion of the reciprocative cycle of the needle cylinder and then cause the thread to be elevated above the needles in nonen'gaging position during the remaining portion of reciprocative movement of the cylinder.

Another object of the invention is to construct a reinforcing area in the stocking or similar article wherein the reinforcing thread will be knitted and floated in alternate courses, thus providing a fabric having a corrugated outer surface which affords greater strength and Wearing qualities and possesses greater yieldability and less harshness of texture than fabrics in which the reinforcing threads are plated in consecutive courses in the knitting.

Referring to the drawings wherein the present embodiment of the invention is illustrated:

Figure 1 is a fragmentary view, partially in section, of a circular knitting machine illustrating the arrangement of the improved thread carrier in such machine;

Figure 2 is a plan View of the machine illustrated in Figure 1, showing the position of the improved thread carrier in relation to its appurtenances, certain portions of the machine being illustrated somewhat diagrammatically herein;

Figure 3 is a detailed diagrammatic perspective view, drawn upon an enlarged scale, of the thread carrier and a fragmentary portion of the knitting needles;

Figure 4 is a detailed view in perspective of the thread carrier embodied in the present invention;

Figure 5 is a transverse sectional View through the forward portion of the thread guide shown in Figure 4; y l

Figure 6 is a detailed view showing a front elevvation of the, thread carrier and the relation position of the floated or unknitted thread in alternate courses of the fabric as formed during the knitting operation.

Figure 9 is an elevational view somewhat diagrammatic illustrating the position of the needles and threads'carried therein when the needle cylinder is reciprocated counter clockwise.

Figure 10 is a similar View illustrating the relation of parts and the threads when the needle v cylinder is revolved in the opposite direction kto lthat shown in Figure 9.

The knitting machine illustrated in Figure l embodies generally a base lll having mounted thereon a frame 11, which supports a pattern cylinder l 2, a knitting needle cylinder i3 and the needle picker i4 therefor. This plate is provided with tapered cam blocks forming,r tracks or grooves 4i into which the butt or lug of the needles are .extended to eiect their vertical reciprocation within the operating cycle. IThe cams are disposed to effectuate the elevation of the knitof the needle is forced open, the thread passed thereover, a second thread gathered, the first thread then being cast off the shank of the needle closing the latch and the second thread drawn into interlooped engagement with the contiguous loops. Since all of these mechanisms and the operation thereof are of the usualwell known form and constitute per se no part of the present invention a further or more detailed description thereof is deemed unnecessary herein. Above the knittingneedle cylinder there is a latch ring I5 upon which there is mounted a throat plate I6 and a plurality of thread carriers I1. The thread carrier I1-a, b, c and d as illustrated in Figure 2 constitute the thread feeding medium for the yarns forming the body of a stocking or similar fabric product. These members comprise respectively an arm having an aperture extended vertically through the end portion thereof for receiving and guiding the thread into the knitting needles when the arms are lowered into operative position. D

The thread carrier I8 embodying the present invention is adapted for coordinated operation with the arms I1 and is suitably adapted to guide an additional thread or reinforcing fiber within a localized plated area in the knitted fabric. In detail the thread carrier I8 comprises an arm apertured adjacent its outer end to retain a thread and drilled in the opposed end to receive a pin mounted in a post I9, supported by a stanchion 2li. The thread carrier I2 is oscillated about its pivotal support by a rocker arm 2| coordinated with linkage`22 controlled by a series of cams 23 mounted upon the pattern drum I2. The rocker yarm 2l is arranged to elevate the thread carrier Iii through the influence of the cam 23 and linkage therefor, the thread carrier being moved to feeding position by a tension spring 24 supported by the pntle 25 mounted upon the post IS and a stud 26\secured in the end por-- tion of the arm above and rearward the fulcrum thereof.

The forward portion of the thread carrier or arm I8 is formed with 'a transverse slot 21 inclined downwardly from the center of the outer side of the arm to a point adjacent the base of its opposed face. The slot as will be seen in Figure 5 defines a triangular block or cam which guides the thread during the operation of the machine. In the upper portion of the arm above and centrally disposed in relation to the slot 21 there is an aperture 28 which is provided to receive the thread from the thread tension mechanism, not shown, under working conditions. When the arm is lowered to operative position the thread is guided through the aperture 28 to the slot 21 and thence over the lower edge thereof to the thread guide I6 where during a portion of the knitting operation it is fed into the knitting needles. Upon the reverse reciprocative movement of the needle cylinder the thread is drawn through the slot 21 to a. point adjacent the crest thereof and above the contiguous needles in the cylinder so that knitting engagement of the lthread with such needles Will be rejected throughout this portion of the operative cycle of the ,l

machine.

As will be seen inFigure 6 the mouth piece or throat plate I6 is formed with inclined face 29, the elevated portion thereof merging with a shoulder 30 formed with a recess 3|` therein which guides the threads from thei arms I1 and I8- into the needles during the knitting operaretraction is engaged, at which time the latch tion. The opposed end of the guiding surface 29 is similarly formed with a. shoulder portion 32 having a recess 33 for guiding the thread from the carriers I1-a, b, c, and d. The upper portion of the shoulder 32 is relieved to prevent the thread discharged through the slot 21 in the -thread carrier I8 from being engaged within the recess 33 and to prevent the entry of the thread from said carrier within the knitting needles during reverse reciprocative operation of the needle cylinder when the thread is withheld from entry to the knittingneedles.

Since the present invention pertains to the introduction of the thread within a localized area of the fabric it will be understood that the operation of the machine as referred to hereinafter will be confined to the reciprocating cycle of the knitting needle cylinder. It will also be understood that the thread carriers I'I-a, b, c and d perform their operative functions in the usual and heretofore wellknown manner.

In operation, while the cylinder is reciprocating in the direction indicated by the arrow in Figure 3 the needles are elevated as they pass the thread guide IB to a position where the threads guided through the fingers I1 will be engaged thereby. (See Figure 10.) Continued movementof the cylinder will cause the needles to be lowered under iniluence'of the cam blocks thus causing the thread to close the latch of the needle, lock the thread so gathered and eject the looped thread formerly engaged by the hook riding on the shank of the needle at this period of the operating cycle. As the needle cylinder I3 is reciprocated in the opposite direction, the thread a" is guided through the aperture 28 into the slot.

21 where it is directed through the throat 21a thereof over the surface 29 and into the needles 35. During the reverse reciprocatlve movement of the knitting needle cylinder I3 the thread will be drawn through the open end of the inclined slot where it is lifted and guided to a higher plane adjacent the throat 2lb of said slot. The point of discharge of the,thread during this operating cycle is sufliciently elevated above'the knitting needles to prevent the entry of the thread a into the hooked ends of the needles. Thus the thread in the complete operative cycle will be carried by the arm I8, introduced into the needles and knitted in the fabric during the reciprocal tive movement of the cylinder in one direction in the needles upon the opposite reciprocative movement of the needle cylinder, the thread a being `carried or floated over the surface of the fabric-as illustrated in Figure 8 until the cylinder resumes its former reciprocative movement where the thread will be again introduced into the needles and knitted and plated on the outer surface in'the knitted fabric structure.

As illustrated in Figure 9 wherein the thread a" is shown as a dotted line in the interest of clarity the inclined slot 21 will permit the thread a to rest upon the surface 29 of the thread guide I6 when the cylinder is moving in the direction indicated by the arrow, While the thread is so positioned the engagement with the elevated needles is effected. When the needle cylinder is reciprocated in the opposite direction as illustrated in Figure 10 the thread a" will be guided over the surface 28 of the guide IS until the needle within which it is lodged passes a point adjacent the inner edge of the arm Il. Continued movement of the cylinder will cause the thread to be guided upwardly through the inclined slot 21, the angle thereof being suitably disposed to cause the thread to clear the shoulder 34 and to be guided upon the surface 32. As clearly illustrated in Figure 10 when the thread is elevated through the inclined slot 21 and is resting upon the surface 32 the knitting needles 35 have attained their descending position in the operating cycle and will be thus withheld from knitting engagement throughout this portion of the operating cycle, the thread a being merely floated over the surface of the fabric until it is ,forced downwardly through the inclined slot 2l upon the reverse reciprocative cycle where it will reach the position shown in Figure 9 and will be seized by a needle for engagement in the knitting needles.

As the cylinder revolves counter clockwise (Fig. 9) all of the threads or yarns including the thread a, guided by the thread carrier I8, are knitted throughout this cycle of revolution of the needle cylinder. As the cylinder revolves in a clockwise direction the heel and toe yarns carried by the thread carriers I`I--a, b, c and d'are knitted into the fabric as shown in Fig. 10. In this cycle, however, at vthe beginning of travel of the cylinder the reinforcing thread a rides upwardly in the slot 2'I of the thread guide I8 over the relieved or beveled corner of the shoulder 32, onto the ledge formed by the shoulder 32 where it is maintained above the hooks of the needles 35 in non-engageable or non-knitting position. While so positioned the thread a is engaged in the last needle 35-a as shown at the end of the reinforced portion of the fabric which was knitted while the cylinder revolved in a counter clockwise direction (Fig. 9). Since the thread a is held taut by lthe usual take-up mechanism,

not shown, the thread a will be held above. the remaining needles (Fig. 10) until the clockwise revolution of the needle cylinder is completed, and at this particular point is resting taut against the last needle which has been pushed up out of action by the needle raising pick i4 on the previous revolution as is customary in machines of this type. With the rst counter clockwise movement (Fig. 9) of the cylinder, the needle raising pick M (Fig. `1) engages and lifts the last needle 35-b so that the thread "a will be caught between the needle above referred to and the needle now lifted by needle raising pick I4, whereupon continued movement of the cylinder it is carried back and positioned upon the surface 29 of the throat plate until caught by the succeeding needles and inter-knitted in the fabric throughout the counter clockwise revolution of the cylinder. When the cylinder renews its clockwise rotation the thread a is again carried above the needles in non-engaging position and the cycle heretofore described is repeated.

At the end, of the rst clockwise movement, heretofore described, the yarn a is held taut between the finger 4I8 and the last needle in which yarn a" has been knit, and is also resting on surface 32. It Will be understood that the cylinder continues to rotate a few degrees after the last needle of the needles in action takes its last stitch. During this continued movement the yarn a, due to its position on the surfacey 32, above the level of the needles in action, rides over the heads of the lowered needles in action until the cylinder comes to the end of its rotation. At this point, yarn a has floated across the cylinder above the fabric and is resting against the last needle which was raised by picker I4 on the last previous counter-clockwise movebetween these two needles.

ment of the cylindenbengheld taut by the take up. As the cylinderinow rotates in the counterclockwise position, 4'fjus't `before this last needle above referred to passes the surface 32 the`pick I4 elevates the needle next to the needle above referred to, thereby locking the floated yarn a This ,upward movement of the needle does not raise nor change the position of yarn a with reference to the needles as the finger I8 is so close to the needles as to keep the yarn down to the level of the mouthpiece and yarn a is not resting against the needle being raised. As the locked yarn a" passes the surface 32, under the influence of slot 21, the yarn a drops off surface 32; is carried over to the opposite side of the mouthpiece and is knit `in the regularway. Moreover, the needles in action are raised before they pass surface 32, as shown in Fig, 9, thereby causing the hooks of these needles to be above the surface of yarn a and be caught by the knitting needles the same as the other heel and toe yarns in the regular way, being held in position for knitting by the recess 3I. After being knit into the fabric during the counterclockwise rotation, the cylinder now rotates in a clockwise position and the yarn a is again lifted upon the surface 32 by the method heretofore described, at the time of the succeeding clockwise rotation, then the operation above described is repeated.

Although the process of making the upper or last half of the toe of a stockingis done by widening, the pick I4 still continues to raise one needle during each succeeding counterclockwise rotation. When making the upper or last half of the toe, la second set of picks (not shown) provided in machinesl of this type, go into action on the opposite side of the machine, and each of these picks lowers two needles, while the pick I4 still continues to raise one during each rotation,

thereby making a gain of one needle being lowered during each rotation of the cylinder resulting in a widening operation which brings the short butt needles back, to the same position or the same number of needles in action as when .a

direction, but since it was rejected from the opl posite reciprocative movement of the cylinder will form a fabric in which the thread lies only in alternate courses thereby providing a fabric having the wear resisting virtues of other forms of knitted reinforcement, and in addition possessingv the advantage inherent in the ribbed or corrugated surface, including greater yieldability, elasticity, less harshness` and less rigidity than in other fabrics wherein the reinforcing bers are introduced in consecutive courses and consequently so matted or packed as to effectuate a rigid texture.

In the production of hosiery and similar articles made in accordance with the teachings of this invention the floated threads a are sheared adjacent the point at which they are engaged within the knitted fabric at the points i2 and 43 in Figure 8, having short projecting ends along each of the marginal edges of the reinforced area.

The arrangement of the cams 23 and the linkage coordinated therewith eiectuates the elevation of the arm I8 after the reinforcing area is of the arm i8 is disposed rearwardly and below the fulcrum of the arms Il and that through this arrangement the end portion of the arm is departing from the scope or spirit of th'e invention as herein claimed.

I claim:

1. In a knitting machine having a periodic rotative reciprocating knitting needle cylinder, a thread carrier for guiding a thread into and out of engagement with said needles, said thread carrier comprising an arm having an aperture therein for receiving a thread, a cam in the end portion of said arm, said cam being formed to guide the thread into said needles during the rotation of said needle cylinder in oneP direction and to elevate the thread above the needles in non-engaging position during the reverse rotation of the needle cylinder.

2. In a knitting machine, a thread carrier comprising an arm, means therein for supporting a thread, a cam in the end portion of said arm formed to elevate the thread to non-knitting po- -sition during a portion of the operating cycle of of engagement with said needles, said thread carrier comprising an arm having an aperture therein for receiving a thread, the end portion of said arm having a transverse slot therein inclined from one side of the arm to the opposed side thereof, said aperture communicating with said slot, the inclination of said slot being adapted to guide a thread extendedv over the surface thereof into the knitting needles during the rotative movement of the needle cylinder in one direction and to elevate the 'thread in non-engaging position with the needles during the opposite rotative movement of the needle cylinder.

4. In a knitting machine having a periodic rotative reciprocating knitting needle cylinder, a thread carrier for guiding a thread into andout of engagement with said needles, said thread carrier comprising a vertically actuatable arm having an aperture in the end portion thereof for receiving a thread, a cam contiguous said aperture constituting a guiding surface for the thread, said cam embodying an inclined body the lower surface thereof being disposed to guide the thread into the knitting needles when the needle cylinder is rotated in one direction, the

`higher surface of said ycam being disposed to preto guide the thread into said needles during the rotation of said needle cylinder in one direction and to elevate the thread above the needles in non-engaging position during the reverse rotation of the needle cylinder whereby the thread carried by said arm will be knitted in alternate courses of a fabric during the operative cycle of the machine.

6. In a knitting machine, a thread carrier comprising an arm, means therein for supporting a thread, a cam in the end portion of said arm, said cam being formed to guide a thread into the knitting needles in a portion of the knitting cycle and to deect the thread from knitting engagement with the needles during another portion of the knitting cycle.

'7. In a knitting machine, a thread carrier, a throat plate, a shoulder therein coordinated with said thread carrier for guiding a thread into knitting engagement with the knitting needles throughout a portion of the operating cycle of the machine, a second shoulder in said throat plate, disposed above the iirst named shoulder and coordinated with said thread carrier for guiding said thread into non-knitting engagement with the knitting needles throughout another portion of the operating cycle of the machine, and means in said thread carrier for elevating the thread over the rst named shoulder and upon the second named shoulder whereby saidthread is alternately guided into and out of knitting engagement with the knitting needles during a complete operating cycle of the machine.

HOWARD SEVERN REGAR. 

